the court of family affairs totally saturated
For several weeks, Toulouse family lawyers have been sounding the alarm. In this month of September, the court is still congested. Divorces, child custody, alimony, there is no more hearing date available at the Toulouse court.
Divorce, child custody or allocation of alimony … the files continue to pile up at the Toulouse courthouse in a very worrying way.
A petition facing the lack of means
As of June 23, 2022, the Council of the Toulouse Bar Association had nevertheless alerted and launched a request in the face of the lack of means in the court in charge of family matters. “Resources for family justice at the stop in Toulouse”. Such is his name. Today it has received more than 1970 signatures.
“The situation is catastrophic. Currentelement it is almost impossible to obtain a hearing date for divorce, to fix a residence or a right of reception for the children or an alimony within a reasonable time. For example, it takes between 2 and 2 and a half years to obtain a divorce in Toulouse, even with simple files, or 6 months to a year longer than usual. Waiting times that are unbearable for our customers and even detrimental for the spouses and their children”explains Maître Aurélien Delecroix, civil law lawyer in Toulouse.
No date available to assign
Another lawyer from Toulouse confirms this blocking situation which has lasted for several weeks.
In practice, to seize a judge for family affairs, we must obtain a date from the registry to assign. However, today, we have no date available for either a divorce or for non-divorce procedures. For example, a father who no longer sees his child because his mother refuses to introduce him, who has never gone to court for his separation, is forced to wait months before having a decision. He has no visibility to know when he will see his child again. It is a disaster. And without a court order, the police cannot intervene.
Me Sophie Dermarkar, Family Lawyer
The anger of the litigants
This observation provokes the anger and incomprehension of the citizens of Haut-Garonne who are awaiting a trial or a decision from the family court judge.
Faced with a completely overcrowded court, the lawyers obtain hearing dates but “sparingly”. The jurisdiction is not at a standstill, but it lacks the means to deal with the requests.
Me Nathalie Dupont, specialist in family law had appeared in June in the press on these difficulties. “Even if the magistrates and the clerks are doing the impossible, they have reached saturation point, they cannot do more. To render justice as soon as possible, it will be necessary to hire with a vengeance.»
Toulouse has seen its demography explode in 20 years, but in the Toulouse courts the number of magistrates and clerks has not followed. It would take between fifty and eighty more civil servants to cope with the increase in the population and the disputes which naturally might arise.
Me Pierre Dunac, President of the Toulouse Bar
The risk, according to the lawyers, is that simple misunderstandings perceived too late will turn into conflicts with dramatic turns.
Delays only exacerbate difficulties and tensions and even conflicts in difficult cases, especially for children. You have to make quick decisions, which is not possible at the moment. In 15 years of practice, I have never experienced such a situation.
Me Aurélien Delecroix, civil law lawyer
“Politicians have not ceased to show a desire to fight against domestic violence, this subject should be an essential point. It is unacceptable that a court like Toulouse does not have sufficient means”explains Pierre Dunac, the president of the Toulouse bar.
“6 magistrates, it would take 12”
Today the jurisdiction of Toulouse has 6 magistrates for family affairs where it would take at least 12 to absorb a major dispute which represents 50% of civil cases in court.
Me Pierre Dunac, President of the Toulouse Bar
Two additional magistrates were expected in September for family affairs in Toulouse. “UN additional magistrate will arrive but he will not be there until November 14. We then have two other magistrates, who do not have a dedicated post, who will be placed in family affairs from October 10 but only on December 31. For the moment therefore, we cannot have hearing dates. We should have new time slots by the end of September for hearings in the first quarter of 2023. This is totally intolerable. We put a bandage on a wooden leg.” concluded Me Pierre Dunac.